The Thunder is the host franchise for the All-Star Game on Jan. 23 at Stockton Arena. The skills competition is on Jan. 22, and both events begin at 7 p.m.

Team and league officials have been working together for months to put on the all-star event, which will include the induction of the first class to the Hall of Fame as the ECHL celebrates its 20th anniversary. One of the Thunder's main responsibilities has been ticket sales, and single-event tickets went on sale on Sunday.

Chapman said he has been happy with the response of the fans so far. As of Monday afternoon, about 5,500 tickets had been sold for the all-star game, and 4,000 for the skills competition.

Last year's game in Boise, Idaho drew 5,000.

"It's going well, and if I was going to predict, I'd say we should have between 7,000 and 8,000 for the game," Chapman said. "We'd be happy with around 5,000 for the skills competition, which is always a little lower."

Stockton's staff is also dealing with issues as varied as promotions, marketing and how to get the incoming players from Sacramento Inter-national Airport to Stockton. The league and the Thunder also will host a Hall of Fame Luncheon and a post-game fanfest on Wednesday.

"It can be tough on the staff, but everyone is also very excited about getting a chance to do this," Chapman said. "And the league has been great to work with. They've helped us every step of the way."

Dave Piecuch, the Thunder's vice president of sales, said he knows from experience what having the league's assistance means when you are putting on an all-star game.

Peicuch worked for the Adirondack Frostbite when it hosted the United Hockey League All-Star Game in 2005.

"The (UHL) didn't help at all, and that makes it very difficult on a team," Piecuch said. "This is completely different, and we appreciate it."

The Thunder, which is in its third season of existence, was awarded the ECHL All-Star Game on Feb. 22, 2007. It's the second time the game will be played in California. The Fresno Falcons hosted it in 2006.